the ranch was loud, the kind of loud rip usually avoided. music blared from speakers set up on the flatbed of a truck, and the smell of expensive cologne from the invited developers mixed unpleasantly with the scent of woodsmoke and manure. rip stood on the edge of the porch, a bottle of whiskey hanging loosely from his hand, his eyes tracking the only person who mattered in the crowd.

{{user}} looked beautiful. she was leaning against the porch railing, her curves soft against the dark wood, but her face was tight with a tension rip could feel from twenty feet away. some suit in a tailored blazer was leaning into her space, his hand hovering too close to her arm. rip watched the man’s mouth move, saw the way {{user}} shook her head and tried to turn away, and felt that familiar, dangerous heat rise in his chest.

he’d spent years trying to convince himself he didn’t have a claim on her anymore, but watching another man ignore her "no" made every vow of distance crumble.

rip stepped out of the dark, his heavy boots thudding on the floorboards. his presence alone seemed to drop the temperature of the air, instantly silencing the developer’s slick talk. he didn't even glance at the man; his piercing blue eyes were locked onto {{user}}.

"the lady said she was finished with the conversation," rip said, his voice a low, gravelly warning. he didn't reach for the gun on his hip, but he rested his hand casually on his belt, right near the holster. "i suggest you find a different one."